Seen, Secure, Free

Editor’s note: Our next Online Bible Study — Hidden by Allison Allen — starts July 22^nd! Join us at the beach this summer... Here’s a note from Allison just for you.

*

Hey there, fellow sojourner.

I’m so grateful you’re here. I understand that in a world with an ocean full of ocean-sized things to occupy one’s time, the gift of your time is just that — a gift.

I wish we had five minutes standing side by side, staring out at the ocean, watching the waves hurl themselves upon the shore. I know I’d wonder about the state of your heart. Maybe it’s rested and rejoicing. Maybe it’s in need of renovation. Maybe it’s shouldering rejection or tainted with a residue you wish the surf could scrub off. Maybe your heart is just exhausted and frail.

I get it, friend.

Before I go on, let me introduce myself. I’m Allison, a tall girl who has stood on some stages, written some books, and spoken some words. I love my Tall Man; my two old-and new-covenant sons, Levi and Luke; and all my people. I’m smitten with the bride of Christ, and I think our weaknesses attract His glory more than our strengths ever could. I’m a woman who has experienced God’s love at the bottom of the well and at the ceiling of the sky. And I’ve had times when my heart’s been wrecked and worn out and everything in between.

I so get it.

• Our hearts may have been shaped by different storms, but I bet all the fish in the sea that the same things drive them to their proverbial knees and cause the same longing.

I bet both of our hearts love Jesus, yet we have a suspicion that we’ve allowed the world’s pressure to make ourselves visible — to “make a name for ourselves” — to creep in as well, and it can distract us and dampen our delight in Him.

We love Jesus and know that He does not call us to an unending, pressured performance but to something more rooted and enduring than we could dream.

We love Jesus and are exhausted from being driven by the opinions of others, the voices of the crowd, rather than the voice of the King.

We love Jesus and want to rediscover the delight of the hidden-with-Christ life, remembering that He is our security.

We love Jesus and want to be released back into the story He is writing.

We love Jesus and want to sink our hearts into the relief that comes from knowing we are seen by God.

We crave security and freedom way down deep, where rot and decay can never invade.

Not long ago, I was desperately in need of that security and freedom — I didn’t even know how much — and God led me to the sands of the Outer Banks to show me that need and to fulfill it. He reminded me of eternal truths I so easily forget.

As someone who has spent a good portion of her life as an actor, there is a terrible tendency in me to equate activity with authentic existence. Visibility with validity. Fame with favor. Though I am not proud of it, there are times I confuse making a name for myself (with all the spiritual bells and whistles attached, of course) with lifting high the name of Jesus. When others don’t seem to see me, I can struggle to remember my worth. When I surrender to the allure of shiny, worldly things, I can be infested with insecurity.

I can allow my heart to be slyly twisted — focusing on lesser loves, valuing lesser things. I chase hard after them and then wonder why my tank is empty. Where’s the joy? The power, vision, and hope? The security and freedom?

But eventually — often after a storm — I stop, search God’s horizon, and see there the great call of the gospel rising afresh like the morning sun, and I remember:

Hide yourself in the finished work of the cross, heart.
Find joy in the hidden life, heart.
Remember Jesus’ call is not about jockeying to be seen by the world, heart. This clarion call invites you to collapse into the knowledge of how deeply seen you are by the Father.

His love will break your heart of stone and make it new with soft flesh and endurance.

I’ve lived that journey this past year on the stormy beaches of my life. I’ve meandered through some of the lesser-known, concealed characters of Scripture and the lessons of Colossians and found myself in a place of surprising beauty and strength.

I’m ready to walk with you along this path. Let’s get sand between our toes. Let’s run the beach together and look to the One who is ever and always bringing deeper transformation and freedom.

Excerpted with permission from Seen, Secure, Free by Allison Allen, copyright Allison Allen.

* * *

Your Turn

There’s no better time than this summer to get hand-in-Hand with Jesus and know how much we are loved, known, and seen. Please, come join us for the Hidden OBS! Grab a friends or two and sign up today! ~ Laurie McClure, Faith.Full